Wednesday, December 28, 2016

Israeli spokesman: We have ‘ironclad information’ the Obama administration pushed the UN resolution UPDATE: Info will be presented to Trump admin.

Friday I wrote about the U.S. choosing to abstain on an anti-Israel resolution at the United Nations. That abstention allowed the resolution to pass. One of the most surprising elements of the story was the claim, made by Israel, that the U.S. had not only allowed the resolution to pass but had colluded in the background to support it. “The U.S administration secretly cooked up with the Palestinians an extreme anti-Israeli resolution behind Israel’s back which would be a tail wind for terror and boycotts and effectively make the Western Wall occupied Palestinian territory,” an unnamed Israel official said, as reported by the Washington Post.

David Keyes, spokesman for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, doubled-down on that claim Sunday, telling CNN’s Dana Bash, “We have ironclad information, frankly, that the Obama administration really helped push this resolution and helped craft it, from sources internationally and sources in the Arab world.” “It’s really an unfortunately legacy, kind of a last minute jab at Israel that actually distances peace,” he added. “I applaud leaders of both the Democratic and Republican parties that have come out and blasted this deeply anti-Israel resolution,” Keyes said.

Host Dana Bash asked Keyes if he could share the “ironclad” information with her viewers. “Unfortunately, I can’t, not here on CNN, but I can tell you we have full confidence the information is accurate,” Keyes replied. “It’s really unfortunate because Israel’s hand has been and is extended for peace. The Prime Minister has called on President Abbas literally hundreds of times to meet with him anytime, anywhere without preconditions,” Keyes said.